Rail-brace.



No. 860,954. I PATENTED JULY 23, 1907.

J. F. WITT & J. W. MoALLISTER.

RAIL BRAGEL- AIPLIOATION FILED APR. 24, 1907.

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No. 860,954. PATBNTED JULY 23, 1907.

' J. F. WITT & J. w. MoALLISTER.

RAIL BRAGB.

APPLIOATIOR' rum) APR. 24, 1 901.

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PATENTED JULY 23, 1907. J. F. WITT & J. w. MoALLISTER.

RAIL BRAGE.

APPLIOATION'EILED APR. 24, 1907.

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UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

JULIUS F. WITT AND JOHN W. MCALLISTER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

RAIL-BRACE Specification of Letters Patent,

Patented July 23, 1907.

Application filed April 24, 1907. Serial No. 369,991.

This invention relates to rail braces such as are quite extensively applied to the outer sides of the rails of railway tracks, especially on curves, to brace the rail against overturning under lateral thrust of the wheel flange.

The main object of our invention has been to provide an improved device of this-character simple in construction, inexpensive to make, and combining a high degree of strength and rigidity with light weight.

To this end the invention consists of a rail brace having the peculiarities of construction and mode of application to the rail hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

Our invention, more specifically, relates to that class or type of rail braces that are bent to be formed from a single sheet metal blank, and comprise a base-member adapted to be spiked to the tie and a tapered bodymember adapted to contact the side of the rail.

In its preferred form, our rail brace comprises, as its principal characteristics, a basemember adapted to be spiked to the tie, a pair of parallel tapered side walls shaped to fit against and beneath the tread-portion of the rail, and an integral extension of the base-member that lies beneath the base of the rail and is provided with inwardly turned lips adapted to clamp the edge of the rail-base on the side opposite to that to which the rail-brace is applied.

In the preferred form of our invention we also strengthen and stiffen the side walls of the brace by forming thereon laterally projecting flanges; and, to insure against accidents to persons who may be walking on or across the track, we employ filler members to close thespace between the side walls of the brace, which filler members may take the form of plain wooden blocks, or metal covers; both of which forms of filler also serve to transversely stiffen and strengthen the side walls of the brace.

Our invention is fully illustrated in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, where 111,-

Figure 1 is a plan view of a sheet metal blank from which our improved rail brace is bent to form. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the rail brace as the same appears when bent to form from the blank of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of our rail brace as applied to the rail, the latter appearing in cross-section; said figure also showing a wooden filler block. Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view on the line H of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the form of rail brace shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Fig. 6 is a plan view of a slightly modified form of brace with a sheet metal filler. Fig. 7 is a side elevational view of Fig. 6, with the rail shown in cross-section; and Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional View on the line S8 of Fig. 7.

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1 to 5, inclusive, the improved rail brace of our invention is formed from a sheet metal blank such as is illustrated in Fig. 1 cut and shaped to be bent into final form, and comprises essentially a base-member 10, parallel side walls 11, the inclined upper edges whereof are provided with outwardly turned ribs or flanges 12, an extension 13 of the base adapted to underlie the base of the rail 14, upwardly turned stops 15 on that edge of the base-plate extension 13 which is adjacent to the rail brace proper, and upwardly and inwardly turned lips 16 on that edge of the base-plate extension remote from the rail brace proper. The rail brace oxtension 13 is also preferably provided substantially centrally thereof with a laterally projecting tongue 17. The base 10 and tongue 17 have formed therethrough holes 18 and 19, respectively, to receive the usual spikes 20 by which the rail brace is strongly secured to the upper face of the tie 21.

To show a simple and convenient manner of bending or shaping the rail brace from a single sheet metal blank, I have illustrated the latter in Fig. 1 of the drawings, wherein the reference characters 10 11, 12, 13, 15, 16 and 17 indicate the several parts or elements of the brace designated by the corresponding numerals without the exponents in Figs. 2 to 5, inclusive. In the said figure, the wings 11* are bent upwardly on the dotted lines A to form the side walls 11, the marginal strips 12 are bent outwardly on the dotted lines B to form the reinforcing flanges or ribs 12; the strips 15 formed by the incisions indicated at C are bent upwardly on the dotted lines D to form the stops 15; and the strips 16 formed by the longitudinal slits E are bent upwardly on the dotted lines F and turned inwardly to thereby form the overlapping lips 16. It will be observed that the inner ends of the wings 11 and marginal strips l2 are cut out and trimmed, as indicated at G so as to fit snugly, when said wings are bent upwardly to form the side walls of the brace, against the side and under walls of the head or tread of the rail, as best shown in Fig. 3. The upper ends of the ribs 12 are also preferably bent downwardly or warped, as indicated at 12, Fig. 3, sufficiently to ob tain a snug fit thereof against the side wall of the rail head.

By reason of the above-described construction the parallel side walls of the brace, integral with the base and provided with the reinforcing flanges 12, constitute very rigid lateral reinforcements to the rail; and by virtue of the extension of the base lying beneath and anchored to the opposite edge of the rail, the said side walls are at all times held in snug contact with the side of the rail so as to be continuously effective as a brace for the latter.

In order to prevent any possible injury that might result to persons walking across or upon the track by reason of catching the foot in the brace, as Well as to still further strengthen and stiffen the latter, we preferably employ a filler member that covers the channel formed between the side walls of the brace; which filler member may, in a simple form, consist of an inclined or wedge-shaped block of wood marked 22, that is of such a form and size as to completely fill the said channel, the inner end of the lower face of the block being preferably beveled to seat upon the sloping upper face of the rail base, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5, and the inner end of the block being in substantial contact with the web of the rail. The block is secured I in place by any suitable fastening means, such, for

instance, as the through-bolt 28 and nut 24, extending through said block and the side walls 11 of the brace. The lower face of the filler-block 22 will also preferably be hollowed out or recessed sufiiciently to accommodate the heads of the fastening spikes, as indicated in Fig. 3.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 6 to 8, inclusive, the same form and construction of integral or one-piece brace extending beneath and anchored to the rail base is employed as already described, excepting that the marginal ribs or flanges 12 of the side walls are omitted, and, in place of the wooden filler block, we employ a sheet metal cover so constructed and applied as to also act as a transverse brace for the side walls of the rail brace. This cover member, which may also be pressed from a single sheet metal blank, comprises a transversely extending plate 25, longitudinal ribs 26 of inverted channel form in crosssection at either margin thereof adapted to fit snugly down over the upper edges of the side walls 11, and depending side-plates 27 constituting extensions of the outer sides of the channel ribs 26 and overlapping the side walls 11 of the brace throughout approximately the entire extent of the latter. A through-bolt 28 and nut 29 unite the parts in the manner clearly shown in Figs. 7 and 8, whereby there is formed a hollow, light, strong and rigid brace that is safe-guarded against causing accident, is cheaply made, easily applied, and affords a high degree of resistance to lateral thrusts upon the rail. The use of the transverse fillers, such as the wooden block shown in Figs. 1 to 5, or the metal cover shown in Figs. 6 to 8, is not absolutely essential to our device; but one form or the other will preferably be employed for the reasons given, the wooden form being somewhat cheaper, and the metal form presenting a somewhat better and more finished appearance.

For the application of the above-described rail brace to a rail it is not necessary to remove the rail or to apply the brace from the end of the rail. The brace can be applied to the rail between two adjacent ties, in the following manner. The base-plate extension is inserted beneath the rail base, the lips 16 are hooked over the remote edge of the rail base, the brace is then raised until the base-plate extension lies in contact with the rail base with the stops 15 abutting against the inner edge of the rail base; and, the rail being elevated or the tie depressed slightly, the device is then slid laterally to a position on the tie, to which latter it is spiked. The filler member, of either form shown, when used, can then be applied in an obvious manner, and the device is then in operative position.

We claim:

1. An integral or one-piece rail brace comprising a baseplate adapted to be spiked to a tie, tapered side walls the inner ends whereof are shaped to fit against the side of the rail, and laterally projecting reinforcing ribs or flanges on 7 the upper inclined edges of said side walls, substantially as described.

2. An integral or one-piece rail brace comprising a base plate having an extension lying beneath and anchored to the rail base, parallel tapered side walls the inner ends whereof are shaped to fit against the side of the rail, and laterally projecting reinforcing ribs or flanges on the upper inclined edges of said side walls, substantially as described.

3. A rail brace comprising a base-plate adapted to be spiked to a tie, parallel tapered side walls the inner ends whereof are shaped to fit against the side of the rail, and a filler-member between said side walls, substantially as described.

4. A rail brace comprising a basesplate adapted to be spiked to a tie, parallel tapered side walls the inner ends whereof are shaped to fit against the side of the rail, a filler-member between said side walls, and a transversely disposed bolt uniting" said side walls and filler-member, substantially as described.

5. An integral or onepiece rail brace comprising a baseplate adapted to be spiked to a tie, tapered side walls the inner ends whereof are shaped to fit against the side of the rail, a base-plate extension underlying the rail base, a tongue projecting beyond said base-plate extension and apertured for the passage of a spike, lips on the outer edge of said base-plate extension on either side of said tongue turned over the adjacent edge of the rail base, and stops on the inner edge of said base-plate extension engaging the other edge or the rail base, substantially as described.

JULIUS F. WITT. JOHN W. MCALLISTER.

Witnesses SAMUEL N. IoND, Fiunmnrck C. GooDwIN. 

